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Phys.org / Molecular 'knitting machine' for bacterial capsules mapped in 3D

Most bacteria, including many bacterial pathogens, are surrounded by an outer protective layer of sugar molecules, known as a capsule. This primarily protects the bacteria from environmental influences, but also serves as ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / What cold-water geysers on Earth reveal about the habitability of ocean worlds

In the eastern Utah desert, carbon-dioxide-saturated water bubbles, sprays and foams from the ground. These cold-water geysers, sometimes called soda pop geysers, are a new and reliable Earth-based analog for scientists studying ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Deer inhibit trees but raise plant diversity, 18-year study reveals

At high densities, white-tailed deer inhibit growth of trees but increase the overall diversity of smaller plant and weed species, according to a long-term study published recently. The work is published in the journal PLOS ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / If alien signals have already reached Earth, why haven't we seen them?

For decades, scientists have searched the skies for signs of extraterrestrial technology. A study from EPFL asks a sharp question: if alien signals have already reached Earth without us noticing, what should we realistically ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Astronomy & Space
Tech Xplore / Woven nickel-titanium structures unlock new flexibility in 3D-printed shape-memory materials

At first glance, few materials would seem to have less in common than metals and textiles. And yet, by manufacturing nickel-titanium alloys as a highly deformable, interwoven material, more similar to fabric than a typical ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Engineering
Phys.org / New nanohole-based microscopy monitors electrochemical reactions millisecond by millisecond

Many technological applications, such as sensors and batteries, greatly rely on electrochemical reactions. Improving these technologies depends on understanding how electrochemical reactions work. However, most current methods ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Extreme rainfall is worsening algal blooms along South Korea's coast

Extreme rainfall is reshaping coastal waters along South Korea's shoreline, flushing nutrients from land into the sea and fueling the growth of algal blooms. A new multi-year study, published in Frontiers in Marine Science, ...

Feb 15, 2026 in Earth
Medical Xpress / Maps can encourage home radon testing in the right settings

Risk maps for the cancer-causing gas radon can encourage people to test their homes for the substance, but only if homeowners live in known, higher-risk areas, new University of Oregon research finds. For those living in ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Health informatics
Tech Xplore / Why AI may overcomplicate answers: Humans and LLMs show 'addition bias,' often choosing extra steps over subtraction

When making decisions and judgments, humans can fall into common "traps," known as cognitive biases. A cognitive bias is essentially the tendency to process information in a specific way or follow a systematic pattern. One ...

Feb 15, 2026 in Computer Sciences
Phys.org / New tool could reduce collision risk for Earth-observation satellites

Researchers at The University of Manchester have developed a new way to design Earth-observation satellite missions that could help protect the space environment while continuing to deliver vital data for tackling global ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Astronomy & Space
Medical Xpress / AI set to make medical scan reports twice as easy to understand for patients

Artificial intelligence could soon help patients make sense of complex medical scan results, making them far easier to understand without losing clinical accuracy, a major new study by the University of Sheffield suggests. ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Health informatics
Medical Xpress / Blocking both drug-resistant bacteria and influenza with a broad-spectrum infection prevention approach

Secondary infections caused by bacteria or viruses during hospital care remain a long-standing global challenge, despite advances in modern medicine. In particular, mixed bacterial-viral infections in critically ill or immunocompromised ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Immunology